Ethics Committee Says Disgraced Senator John Ensign Was More Than Unethical

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This afternoon, the bi-partisan Senate Ethics Committee unveiled the findings of its investigation into former senator John Ensign, the Nevada Republican who resigned last week rather than face possible expulsion at the hands of his peers. Senator Barbara Boxer announced on the Senate floor that Ensign had not only acted unethically, but illegally — he allegedly “aided and abetted violations of the one-year post-employment contact restriction; conspired to violate that restriction; made false statements to the Federal Election Commission; violated campaign finance laws; and obstructed the committee’s preliminary inquiry.” By resigning, Ensign escaped the jurisdiction of the Ethics Committee, but, like the aide’s wife he had an affair with, he could still be screwed: The Committee is sending “evidence and testimony gathered in the case to the Justice Department, which has been conducting a parallel criminalinquiry.”